Boundless Faith

What is the difference between having faith in something and having confidence in it?  Voltaire said, 'Faith is to believe in something which your reason tells you cannot be true; for if your reason approved of it, there could be no question of blind faith.'  On the other hand confidence is an assured expectation, not of something that cannot be touched, observed, but of what can be tested as experienced and understood personally.  This is why Buddhism shuns faith and embraces confidence.  The Buddha stated, 'Do not blindly believe what others say, even the Buddha. See for yourself what brings contentment, clarity, and peace. That is the path for you to follow.'

Theistic faith demands belief in things that cannot be known.  Direct knowledge and experience with the previously unknown now moves faith into the realm of confidence, therefor it can be said that knowledge destroys faith.  Does it work the other way around as well, can faith overcome knowledge?  Now we are in the world of miracles, the unexplained alteration of reality that runs counter to all knowledge.

Faith in my opinion, resides in the soul and is limitless while confidence emanates from the mind and is clearly bound by finite points.  Therefor one's confidence in himself or the world around him extends only so far as his personal observation and experience, while his faith appears to be endless.

God Drinks Starbucks

This morning sitting on the patio at Starbucks I watched an older gentleman wander up and take a seat alone at a table not too far away from my own.  He remained there for a long time sipping his "tall" coffee and reading a Kindle.  By way of description, he was clearly in his mid-seventies, partially shaved head, tan, tall with a very lean and muscled body of an athlete.  Casually dressed in cargo shorts and a polo jersey he sat in the wooden chair  enjoying the sunshine, Oakley sunglasses on the table in front of him.

I watched for several minutes, not able to pull myself away.  I couldn't shake the feeling that I was somehow looking at myself sometime in the future.   A wave of peaceful calm washed over me, like a sudden realization; a moment of clarity, of presence… perfection.  God was speaking to me… softly but he was clearly there in this moment with me.

Soon the man confidently stood, plucked his Oakleys from the table, and turned to look directly into my eyes and smiled.  I somehow knew at that very moment that the best part of my life is still yet to come.